Catfight
by A Girl Named K
Summary: Oneshot. Set between the first and second books.Tanith Low and China Sorrows, two strong female associates of Skulduggery Pleasant, have a little...disagreement, in China's library. Contains flying books and flying tempers. Enjoy!


**Catfight**

_**I was young and foolish and arrogant. I've changed. I'm not foolish anymore-China Sorrows**_

_**There's 300 hundred of them. Surrounding us isn't going to be an issue!-Tanith Low**_

_**Oh, I'm not taunting you sweetie, I'm just really bored of this conversation-China Sorrows**_

_**So now that we've had this little talk, why don't we stop beating around the bush and you come and have a go. If you think you're hard enough-Tanith Low**_

_**You do not want to upset me. You wouldn't like me when I'm upset-China Sorrows**_

_**Did you hear me? Are you even listening? Do you even care! Maybe you don't. Maybe you want to die again. Maybe you want to join your wife and child but hey! We don't want to die, alright! I don't, Valkyrie dosn't!-Tanith Low**_

_**Women-Skulduggery and Ghastly**_

Tanith Low made her way up the old, derelict staircase of the crumbling tenemant building that led up to China Sorrows' library. She hoped that the adrenaline rush of the motorbike ride over here had made her bright-eyed enough to hide all signs that she had shed tears in the Sanctuary earlier. Oh God, she felt pathetic going to visit _him_ like that. It was insane. It was...painful.

Skulduggery Pleasant had called her, asking her to meet himself and Valkyrie Cain in the library that night, to do some research, and catch up since they hadn't seen each other in so long. London was her home, but Dublin, she had to admit, was where she had the most fun. But London was much larger, and had so many psychos roaming the back-alleys and rooftops that there was always work to be done, and she had to restrict her visits to Ireland. Plus, it was kind of irritating having to go from London to Holyhead to get a ferry with her motorbike everytime.

When Tanith entered the library on the third floor she was greeted by the orange glow and hundreds of shelves that were almost familiar to her. But not as familiar as the raven-haired, porcelain-skinned librarian coming out from the row in front of her. Dressed in an elegant, flowing, powder blue top with a deep indigo skirt, China Sorrows looked stunning. But then, she always looked stunning. It was enough to make any other woman absolutely _sick_ with envy...

Careful now, Tanith told herself as China's serene blue eyes met her own hazel ones. China Sorrows smiled softly.

"Miss Low," she said, sounding surprized. "It's been a while since I've seen you around here. How long has it been? Two weeks?"

"Two_ months_," Tanith corrected her curtly. It wasn't that she and China didn't get along. They never really _spoke_, but Tanith didn't trust her all the same. China had a power that was useful in manipulating people, and she was well connected, on both sides of Good and Evil, _and_ she was a powerful sorceress. Someone with her kind of power couldn't be trusted. Sure, Skulduggery had great power as well, but he didn't use it to stab other people in the back.

"Ah, dosn't time fly?" China continued, gesturing down an aisle for Tanith to follow her. They made their way down the aisle through the library, passing a man with red hair covering most of his body, to an open space. It was like a semi-circular clearing, with a wooden desk in its centre.

"So are you here alone here tonight?" China asked beginning to flick through some files on the desk.

"No, actually I'm meeting up with Skulduggery and Valkyrie tonight."

"Skulduggery and Valkyrie?" China repeated.

"Yes, Pleasant and Cain," Tanith replied coldly. The chilliness didn't go unnoticed. China stopped looking through the files and stared Tanith down with those blue eyes. So like her brother's, they were some of the bluest, palest eyes Tanith had ever seen. They were so cool, so blue, like wisps of cigarette smoke, or a raindrop about to trickle off the tip of a leaf.

"Were you about to search for a book,_ Tanith?"_

Tanith didn't think she was imaging the mock-emphasis on her name. "I _was_ about to, yes."

She turned on her boot-heel, but just as she was about to walk away, China called.

"How is Ghastly, by the way?"

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Tanith froze. She became aware of the sheer silence of the library, and the very few people in it. She turned slightly and looked back at China out of the corner out of her eye.

"There's no change, as far as I know." She faced China fully, putting on an innocent face, not smiling. "Why ask me?"

"Oh, I think we both know the answer to that, my dear Tanith." China let out a small, melodic laugh, which Tanith refused to be entranced by.

"No, actually," Tanith said defensively "Tell me. How am I supposed to know?"

China looked at her the way an arrogant big sister would look down on her younger sister, laughing silently behind those eyes, patronising her.

"Tanith, everyone can see it," she began, her mouth forming a small, sad smile, mocking her. "The way you become either sad or defensive at the mention of his name, the frequent visits to Ireland, the constant disappearances whenever you go to the Sanctuary. I don't see why you won't just_ ask_ them if you can keep him. Perhaps you could take him home and build him a little _shrine_..."

And that's when Tanith Low lost it and went for China Sorrows' throat.

She lunged at China, who patted her stomach and waved her left hand at her, sending her flying backwards into a bookcase by the back wall.

"Temper, temper," China taunted, walking toward Tanith as she lay, books surrounding her. She sprung up again, aiming a kick at China's head, but China did her little stomach pat thing again, this time curling the fingers of her left hand, holding it in front of Tanith's foot. Tanith froze, willing her leg to move, but it wouldn't, it _couldn't_. She grimaced against the awkward strain, and suddenly China let go, splaying her fingers and Tanith was sent spirallig through the air, into another bookcase.

China laughed, enjoying the moment, but the moment didn't last. Impossibly quick, Tanith recovered and barralled into China, sending her into the desk. China groaned and grabbed both of Tanith's wrists as she weighed her down.

"This is a bit of an over-reaction, isn't it?" China said, glaring into Tanith's flaming eyes. "All I did was make an observation, _and _a suggestion. It _is_ quite unhealthy to fall in love with a statue, Tanith. I'm not even sure if there's a name for that..."

"Oh, you know very well that he wasn't always a statue, China," Tanith responded_, _kneeing her in the stomach and then hurling her away from her. China landed by the mess of books on the floor.

"Oh yes, I know that," she said, actually smiling. She began to click her fingers. "You're an odd couple, but there's no doubt you love him, I'll give you that."

The books around China began to rise slowly into the air as she clicked. China let then float for a moment, then raised a black eyebrow.

"You are in love with him, aren't you," she stated. It wasn't a question, and China didn't wait for an answer before sending the books hurtling at Tanith.

Tanith smirked and slid her sword from its scabbard as the books flew at her.

"Don't you dare!" China screeched as Tanith slid beneath the swarm and sliced apart any projectiles that came at her. China screamed with rage and decided that she wanted to get her own hands on Tanith. She got up and strode through the wave of flying books. Tanith was already attacking from the ground and China signalled them. She launched them at Tanith in unison. A great swarm smacked painfully into her, making her cry out. When they fell apart, Tanith had a bloody nose and a cut lip. China knelt down and tugged on her blonde messy hair, pulling her upright.

"Do you have any idea how long it took me to track down those books?" China asked, breathless with fury, hooking a black strand of her own hair behind her ear. "In total? One hundred and _seventy-two _years! That's an awful lot of time I won't be able to replace, my dear."

"I feel your pain," Tanith said through gritted teeth. "I really do. Anyway, you were saying about Ghastly?"

"Oh yes, Ghastly," said China, smiling again. "Yes, you were in love with that gargoyle, weren't you?"

Tanith grinned. "Oh, I think we both know the answer to that, my dear China."

And then she wrapped her right hand around a clump of China's silky hair and wrenched. China cried out in pain, but not as much as when Tanith punched her in the middle of her beautiful, sneering face. China flew across the floor, left moaning.

Tanith stood up and looked down at her while taking out a tissue to wipe the blood off her face. Had she...yes, she had pretty much just told her...it didn't matter now. There was no need for secrets, and China wouldn't say anything, Tanith knew. Though the two women didn't like each other, especially after this fight, it was like a secret oath, that China wouldn't gossip about this. She didn't have enough reason, plus she didn't really care.

Tanith heard quick footsteps coming up the the aisle, and Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain rushed into the clearing. They looked at China, on the ground, then looked at Tanith's still bloody face. They looked at the sword on the ground and the remains of books scattered all over the floor.

"What _happened_?" Skulduggery asked, sounding a little scared. Tanith shrugged, smiling. Valkyrie went over to China, who was now standing, hand on her stomach, glaring at Tanith and raising her hand. Valkyrie dropped, her leg snaking out and kicking China's legs from under her. China was sent to the ground again, groaning.

"Wow," Valkyrie said, smiling at Tanith, "Catfight."

**A/N: Yay! A nice, decent fight between Skulduggery Pleasant's strongest female characters! I do quite like nice little bitch fights where there's alot of slapping involved, and that's why I liked the catfight in The Life of Tanith Low. But you know, I decided to go for a dramatic one where the library gets trashed. I might film a bitchy fight scene...anyway, hope you enjoyed it!**

**Love K **

**x**


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